


Beyond Us

by wellthatjusthappend



Category: Batman - All Media Types, Batman Beyond
Genre: Angst, Bruce is a bitter old man, Implied Character Death, M/M, No Terry shipping don't worry, Non-Explicit Sex, Short, What if Scenario, at least at some point, found families and biological ones, none of this is Terry's fault, positive BruJay
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-01
Updated: 2019-12-01
Packaged: 2021-02-26 02:33:56
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,313
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21635923
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/wellthatjusthappend/pseuds/wellthatjusthappend
Summary: Bruce knew what Waller had done long before he dared to run Terry’s blood in the database. It was right there in those familiar eyes, those broad shoulders, that full mouth…It’s also how he knew Waller had made a mistake.
Relationships: Jason Todd/Bruce Wayne, Terry McGinnis & Bruce Wayne
Comments: 11
Kudos: 185





	Beyond Us

**Author's Note:**

> I've had this one in my head for a while. What if Terry was Jason's instead of Bruce's?

“Shway Old Man, where’d you learn to fight like that?” bright blue eyes, black hair, and a leather jacket, about to be beat up by a bunch of Jokerz… Bruce couldn’t look at him at first. He was almost grateful for the physical pain in his chest to distract him from the familiar emotional ache.

Then the boy was right there, in the cave that he said that he’d never return to, _stealing_ the Batsuit from him to go on his quest for vengeance and making Bruce remember all sorts of things he’d rather forget. 

The ballsy audacity of the boy, Bruce barely stopped himself from calling him Jason. The near slip just had new pain lighting in his heart. 

“Look, something’s gone screwy with your company and I think it cost my old man his life!”

Could it be? After all this time?

“You’re no Batman!”

Bruce let him in. He knew there was no turning back after that, but he couldn’t help himself. Terry was like a walking, talking, open wound for him but he knew he couldn’t let him go. By now, Bruce knew he was no good at helping lost grieving boys, but he couldn’t turn them away either. Maybe Dick was right about him. 

He was almost disappointed when he looked up a picture of Warren McGinnis and had to face the fact that he was definitely not Jason. A part of him hoped that maybe Jason had just left him, changed his name and identity, and settled down to have a family. It would have hurt, but it would have been better than what he suspected happened. 

Jason had never been one to tell anyone when he’d be leaving for a job or when he would be back. It wasn’t unusual for him to disappear for weeks- and sometimes months- on end before reappearing on Gotham’s streets again like it was nothing. Bruce had always worried, but Jason didn’t take kindly to people trying to track him so Bruce had decided not to push it.

But then one day Jason never came home. Bruce kept waiting, hoping that he’d just reappear on the streets with some new gadgets, a scar or two, and sly smile just for Bruce. 

“ _Aw, did you miss me Old Man?_ ” he’d say and Bruce would glare and lecture and hold Jason close the whole night through. 

But Jason never reappeared, and no matter how hard Bruce searched he couldn’t ever find a body. 

Things fell apart fast with the rest of his former Robins after that, and Bruce had no one to blame but himself. 

“You don’t get it, Old Man, some Jokerz just need to get slagged,” Terry snapped, hands balled into fists and chin tipped back defiantly. 

Still, the similarities nagged too much. 

Surely Bruce wasn’t imagining those familiar eyes, those broad shoulders, the curve of that full mouth… He’d been told far too many times that he could be paranoid to the point of insanity, but he’d also learned to trust his gut. There was something more to this boy and Bruce planned to find out what it was. 

When he finally figured it out, he had to put his head in his hands at the irony of it all. 

He knew Amanda Waller liked contingency plans, knew she’d been working on replacements for past superheros since the failed Project Nightwing. She’d never had much interest in Jason other than his occasional usefulness as an Anti-Hero. However, she’d been after a sample of Bruce’s DNA for years. Bruce was pretty sure he knew exactly when she’d finally gotten it…

Or thought she’d gotten it, anyway. 

_“Fuck, Bruce…” Jason gasped out a startled laugh as Bruce pushed him down to the grit of the roof, “here, really?”_

_“Needed you,” Bruce growled, biting the strip of skin on his neck left unprotect by his armor._

_“Heh, ‘m I rubbing off on you, Old Man?” Jason asked, eyes bright and hungry in ways Bruce could never say no to, “Fucking me in public, you’re turning into a real rule breaker.”_

_Bruce didn’t answer, just ground down against the man below him. It’s been too long since he’d gotten to hold him and he couldn’t wait anymore._

_“Nh, ok ok I’m not complaining,” Jason laughed breathlessly and arched to wrap his legs around Bruce’s waist._

_“My love…”_

_“Yeah,” Jason grinned a little more softly, biting Bruce’s lip before kissing him wet and dirty, “C’mon then, B, fucking wreck me.”_

Usually Bruce was very careful about leaving behind any sort of evidence or samples from their trysts, but after he had been too eager to bring Jason home and continue where they left off to worry about cleaning up the mixed seed they’d spilled on the rooftop. 

If Waller had tested anything she might have acquired from that night, there was a 50/50 chance that it would have confirmed to be from Bruce Wayne… and another 50/50 chance that any child she created with those samples would have been Jason’s. 

Bruce still waited far too long run Terry’s blood and confirm it. He wasn’t surprised that staring at the results didn’t bring him any closure. 

How would Jason have reacted to Terry? Other than immediately trying to hunt down Waller and put a bullet in her brain. The pained, fond feeling in Bruce’s heart was no comfort as he imagined the violent curses Jason might be moved to say. The way they would have doubtlessly fought over it. Bruce wished they had gotten the opportunity. 

Would Terry and Jason have fought? They both had impressive tempers on them. Or would they have gotten along? They shared much of the same world views. And he could picture them ganging up on him all too easily. 

He felt sure that Jason wouldn’t have stolen Terry from his family, but he also he would have done better with him, especially when Terry came to him for answers. 

“I loved my dad! And it turns out it was just another lie in a long list of lies. Another thing you’ve _stolen_ from me,” the furious, agonized look in Terry’s eyes was all too familiar.

Bruce knew even less about how to help Terry than he had for Jason. 

“Warren McGinnis apparently wasn’t my father, you are.”

Wrong, but Terry probably would be even more messed up about it if he knew. He didn’t want Terry going about his life believing that his entire world had been manipulated and upheaved for what was ultimately a huge mistake. 

At the end of the day, his father was still probably dead. 

“What do you want from me?” Bruce said instead, and oh he knew it was the wrong thing to say even before the words left his mouth. Still, it was probably one of the most honest things he ever said to Terry. 

Jason would have known what to do. 

“The truth,” Terry spat. 

Bruce was resigned to the fact that Terry would probably grow to hate him. Probably already did. But at least he would survive, and least he would always be driven, at least the city would have a protector truly worthy.

It’s not like they would have ever been a happy family. Not like there was a world where he and Jason would have gotten to raise Terry together. Terry had his own family that he loved. Jason had respected found families more than just about anyone. He wouldn’t have interfered. Still, some nights, the idea haunted him. 

At the end of the day, he was a bitter old man and he had even less to offer than he did when he was training Robin’s. 

_Robin gives me magic!_

“Does it matter? You’re Batman and the city needs you.”

Bruce knew it wasn’t enough.

“It matters,” Terry said storming away from him. 

Bruce knew that too. 

**Author's Note:**

> Terry reminds me so much of Jason in the animated series. Right down to that leather jacket and motorbike loving attitude. Jason and the girls are the only ones who have been left out of the BB universe, so I decided to write him a place. 
> 
> It also gives narrative to how Bruce could backslide so bad that he loses all the progress he's made so far... not to mention all of his other relationships too.


End file.
